Racing Hearts
by NessaCSK
Summary: Toni was a fan of F1 racing driving, he is the antagonist on that sport. They have close to nothing on common but still situations keep getting them close. Kimi Räikkönen/OC
1. Chapter 1

**THE START.**

As any normal Sunday morning, I was lying on my parent's couch watching anything my dad would put on the flat screen. It was like a ritual by now; to hang out just enjoying the time together after all the days we don't see each other thanks to my busy life. It has been hard for me, to live away from them; but I guess it's part of growing up and no one said we should like it.

I had my head resting on my dad's lap while he stroke my hair; he always did that to me as a child. I was such a daddy's girl. At the moment, we were watching some British soccer game and getting ready for the football match that was about to start in a couple of hours. My dad, my big Master Jedi. He is the one I have to blame for my sports addiction. From all my friends, I'm the only one who's always checking on scores and times, always eyeing my wrist-watch waiting impatiently for the next match to begin.

When I was a kid, my dad used to work from 6am to 9pm, Monday to Saturday. Every night, when he arrived, all he craved for was his bed to crash on and forget about another suck-ish day at work. All that, the same story, six days in a row, without interruptions, not even vacations; but when Sunday came around, I didn't care what I had to do, my goal was to stay by his side every possible second. While my three siblings passed their day washing my dad's truck trying to earn a beach day, I sat with him in front of the TV and learned all he had to say about sports, which was a lot. Sometimes he thought me about soccer, others about tennis, or football or, once in a while, F1 racing driving.

Years went by and the day my dad had to stay at home arrived. He had a hard time with it, he was not used to be at home, so he felt locked in a cage and his only scape was talking. I did all I could to help him with that but it wasn't much anyway, school was taking all my time away and it fell on my mom the responsibility to take care of him.

Our closeness grew a lot and we couldn't stay apart when a match or a race was on the TV. By then, I already had my favorite teams and sportsmen and, even when he was a 100% soccer man, I became a 100% F1 girl.

When I turned 18, I moved out my parent's house to a place I shared with a schoolmate, it was nearer the Universität Hamburg, my alma mater, and I could save a lot of time by living there. But that meant I had to find a job to be able to pay the rent. Like every movie cliché, I started working serving tables. It was a small dinner like a mile away from College, which got over-crowded twice per day. Good paid, lots of work. I stayed there for ten months, till my feet told me they couldn't handle another day anymore.

Next, I worked in a sports bar two blocks away from my place. It was a nice hole full of college students and an occasional stranger. There, I could follow all my scores and matches at day till I made a reputation as the walking-newspaper. I kept working there for the rest of my first year, all the second and almost all my third, when I had to leave because of an argument I had with the new manager, a bastard named Bron that knew as much about sports as me about thermonuclear fusion.

Suddenly I found myself jobless and with a lot of bills to pay. Time was getting short and I couldn't find a decent place where I could work and still study enough time to get a good grade. That's when my parents talked to me and offered to pay for my rent in exchange of visits every weekend for the rest of the scholar year. I couldn't say no, and not because of the deal itself, but because of the look in my father's eyes. He wanted that time together and I wasn't about to deny it to him.

The rest of the year was a good one for me, my grades got better now that I had more time, I started dating a cool guy that understood my family situation, and I was about to graduate. However, the peak of the year was in November, when my favorite racing driver won the Formula 1 World Championship. It was an excellent race there on Interlagos. It was red on the podium and he got to drink from the top. Kimi Räikkönen had become a Champion. Little I knew about the future back then.

A little bit after I graduate, I applied for a lot of places to either got a job or do internships. I wasn't getting good feedback and was about to quit those chances when I got a call. Apparently, my application plus a recommendation from one of my teachers got me to be the new intern in the Public Relations area on the _Scuderia Ferrari _team. I can't even express how stunned, happy, scared and nervous I was. This was fate telling me I didn't choose a wrong sport to follow and this was my chance to get and stay on the market. I was going to give my 100% to make it big and get a job, not only an internship. It cost a bit though; I had to move out to Maranello, Italy and my boyfriend thought it was a risky movement he wasn't about to follow. How fool of him if he thought I was about to give up on my dream for him.

However, life showed me how funny and tricky it can be for there is where my worse nightmare appeared. A knight covered and snow and flames. All heart and wisdom. Pride and vanity. I learned to love him more as a driver but I couldn't help but to loathe the very sound of his name. That year, 2009, became the hardest one I can remember. Because of him. Till today.


	2. Chapter 2

**THREE YEARS LATER.**

**2012.**

I was sitting on the further couch in the room trying to avoid everyone, my head felt dizzy and my heart was pounding so hard in my chest, all I could hear was my beating and none of the voices around me were loud enough for me to pay attention. I could not believe I was about to see him again, after all this time and the less than probable situation. He might be an asshole, but Kimi Räikkönen was my favorite racing driver ever and he was about to walk in any second.

I was perfectly aware that last time we saw each other, we didn't really got it well, his strange behavior was enough to give a headache and he seemed to find it amusing. But I couldn't help but to feel excited yet nervous. Would he remember me? I don't think so; I must've been like any other fan girl that crosses his path.

After a few minutes later and a large cup of coffee, the door opened and the sound of two voices were heard. Éric Boullier and him.

After a small commotion, the room became quiet and the presentation began. "Good afternoon, everyone. I hope all the presents here are doing fine and ready to work harder than ever. As you already know, we're here to give the formal welcome to our new racing driver for the next season, driver who, I'm certainly sure, will give us a lot of satisfactions. Mr. Kimi Räikkönen" Everybody started to clap before Éric had finished talking, the excitement was buzzing through the air and no one wanted to let the moment pass.

While everyone was cheering our new driver, he just raised his hand and waved a bit, with an almost non-existent smile upon his face. As the scandal was far from over, Éric started to beg for some silence so Kimi would be able to give his surely short speech. Passed over a minute, the hall was quiet and full with expectation of what he could say.

"Ahhmm… Thank you all for this warm welcome, it's more than I had expected" Kimi said with a small grin looking genuinely amused. "I'm glad to be here and be part of this great team. I'm sure we will make good things on the track and off it. I promise you to give all I have and all I am to make this work. Thank you all for your trust in me."

The moment he said that last word, the entire room began screaming and clapping, he was really loved in this team and this was the time to show it. And he noticed it. His smile grew wider letting us know he liked our welcome. Slowly, both men began walking around with Éric introducing the members of the staff that were gathered. They made their way down the ocean of people, stopping to share some comments here and there, till they finally reached my way. I remembered what my father always said about breathing in a tense moment, it was the key to control any nervousness.

My boss appeared by my side a second before Éric talked to me. "Stephane! I was about to ask your girl where had you gotten yourself into" The three men laughed without really pay attention to me, not that I bothered now that I had practically hide behind my boss with my head low. "Here, our new guy. I need him to have a good publicity, ok? Nothing you had never made before. Kimi, this is Stephane Samson, head of the Marketing and Communications Team. Anything that could be officially known about you or us comes from him. I think you two need to have a longer conversation shortly before the hell rise upon us."

Stephane offered a handshake that was accepted for Kimi while they shared a comment about how crazy the press would go later. Kimi was about to call his goodbye making my heart both relax and ache when my boss interrupted him.

"I think we should schedule that conversation Éric was talking about, we really need to know your opinion to have an idea of how to handle the wave that's coming over." Said Stephane with his professional tone.

Kimi nodded. "Sounds fine to me, schedule it before my agenda gets too crowded" he said letting a laugh scape his lips.

"Let's move fast then! My assistant, Toni, she will handle the date and all; I suck at managing an agenda, I would be lost without her" My boss said moving aside letting me off his cover I had been using the past minutes. Now my heart was racing. Neither Kimi Räikkönen nor Michael Schumacher would go as fast as it. All I could do was muster a smile trying to look calm and collected.

And then it happened. His eyes sparked and a smirk appeared on his handsome face.

"Miss Müller, what a surprise! It never crossed my mind that I would be meeting you here. How have you been?" Kimi said leaving both Éric and Stephane a bit surprised. His smirk just went growing bigger and bigger.

Éric was the first to spoke again "Do you two know each other?" He asked looking between us, a bit of shock in his voice.

I was about to answer but Kimi was faster, as always. "Yes. We met… what? Three years ago?" He looked at me for a confirmation at what I only nodded. "Ok, three years ago, when she started an internship at Ferrari. Sadly, we lost track of each other after I left that team" At that last part, a mischievous light glowed in his eyes. He was enjoying it.

Before anyone else could add something else, I cut in to put an end to this awkward moment. "Yes, we have years without speaking to each other and not because we used to speak a lot, on the contrary, it was all about work and formal press. Now, if you are so kind to go back to the deal we have in hand…" I stopped a moment to open Stephane's agenda and look the nearer date available. "… What's your opinion about scheduling your meeting with Mr. Samson for the next Tuesday, at 10:00?" I said turning my gaze to look him death in the eye but with my most polite smile, trying to make pass the feeling that I was not going to deal with any of his trash again.

He got my point and smirked once again before using his trademark ice serious look. "It's good to me. Tuesday at 10:00. Thank you, Miss Müller, for being so kind and efficient. Now, if you excuse me. Éric, Stephane" And with that, he turn his back on us walking to the exit door with a speed only he could possess. The moment he did that, two pair of eyes stared at me waiting for an answer they would not get. Not at that moment, at least. I grabbed my purse, hold the agendas tighter and made my way out as well.


End file.
